Positive Thinking: What’s It All About?

[Guest guest]

Positive Thinking: What's It All About?

by Darke http://www.disaboom.com

" Think positive! " is a statement we often hear said to someone down

or worried, a flippant remark that we might not take seriously. But

what does it really mean to think positively?

" I'm an absolute advocate of positive thinking, but I couldn't block

out my thoughts of all the things that could go wrong. I decided to

take the approach of thinking what action I could take to reduce my

worries and ensure they didn't stop me from taking part. "

Personally, when faced with a challenge, there is always one voice in

my head saying, " You can do it. " That same voice imagines the best

outcome and acknowledges that I/we will overcome the challenge

successfully. But I also have a second voice that says, " You won't do

it, " telling me what could go wrong, how I'm not capable enough, that

I or we are destined to face trouble and most likely fail.

Many books and articles about positive thinking make suggestions

like, " … allow into your awareness only feelings of happiness and

success. " That's a great idea, but how do we accomplish it?

I'm fundamentally a positive person, but I haven't yet mastered the

ability to allow only positive thoughts into my consciousness. Is it

realistic for most people never even to think of what could go wrong?

Mentally Preparing for a Big Challenge

When planning an expedition to sit-ski across Greenland, although

committed and eager to undertake the challenge, I couldn't help but

worry about all the possible problems. Many of my concerns were

associated with being paralysed: how easily I could get frostbite in

toes I can't feel; how to go to the toilet on the icecap, as I can't

squat; avoiding pressure sores while sitting in a tight sit-ski for

long hours each day; meeting a polar bear—the list of possible

problems seemed long.

I'm an absolute advocate of positive thinking, but I couldn't block

out my thoughts of all the things that could go wrong. I decided to

take the approach of thinking what action I could take to reduce my

worries and ensure they didn't stop me from taking part. How could I

turn my concerns around?

I set about testing what happens to my medical equipment like

catheters and bladder-wash solutions at a temperature of minus 30

Celsius. I sourced a super-deep gel seat that fitted into my ski. I

worked with a friend to make a kind of toilet seat that I could sit

on above the snow, I got a fish-tank thermometer so that I could

monitor the temperature of my toes and a rape alarm for its loud

noise, which I heard polar bears didn't like! The more I tackled my

concerns, the more I noticed being more optimistic and positive about

the expedition being a success.

Staying Positive

" Focus on the positive, but listen to the negative " is what I've come

to realise boosts my ability to think positively. It is about

believing we are capable, staying focused on a positive outcome, yet

listening to the negative thoughts too, so that we can do everything

possible to eliminate them, and mitigate the possibilities of

problems arising.

Positive attitudes are energising. If you have a positive attitude,

it will be infectious, and vice versa. Try as much as you can to

surround yourself with positivity—your own and others'.

A book that recently attracted me on this topic is Change the Way You

See Yourself: Through Asset-Based Thinking, by D. Cramer and

Hank Wasiak, 2008, Running Press.